Mia, please meet Genovia
by Anonymous Quincy
Summary: Mia Thermopolis was in for a lot upon arriving in Genovia, but she certainly wasn't expecting a country personification that was less than thrilled to have her as the new queen and would do anything to make her leave. Is Mia in over her head?
1. Meet Genovia

Title: Mia, please meet Genovia

Rating: T

Summary: Mia Thermopolis was in for a lot upon arriving in Genovia, but she certainly wasn't expecting a country personification that was less than thrilled to have her as the new queen and would do anything to make her leave. Is Mia in over her head?

Pairings: None. Minor one-sided Genovia x France in later chapters.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Princess Diaries or APH.

Note: Special thanks to DaughterofDemeter123 for encouraging me enough to finish and post this. I hope you like it if you're reading this and thanks again for the support.

***Princess Diaries***

"NO! No,no,no,no,no,no,no,no,NO!" The brunette shouted in a rage, his amethyst eyes flaring in both anger and helplessness, "I don't WANT her to be my new boss and you can't make me accept her!"

"Oh, honestly Leal, stop acting like such a baby. You've ever seen her once and haven't even spoken to my granddaughter." Clarice said firmly, getting annoyed with other's tantrum.

He looked at her helplessly, tears forming in his eyes as he tried his best to contain his frustration.

"Yes, I saw her at the State dinner and, to be quite frank, that's all I'll ever need to see of her! Haven't you embarrassed me enough with this girl! That dinner was so humiliating that I couldn't even go to my own birthday ball because I knew she would be there! Now she's here, in my home, and you're telling me that that…. THING is going to be my new boss! I can't handle this Clarice, I just can't! You know I have the utmost respect for you but I just can't agree to this!" Leal shouted, his curls bouncing as he paced and speaking as much with his hands as he did with his mouth.

It was rare when Leal Aymard Verdon went against Clarice's wishes, but when he felt strongly about something he wasn't below throwing a full blown tantrum when he knew he could get away with it. Now was one of those times and it was always a source of great headaches to anyone around him from his former caregivers Spain and France to his (unofficial) brother Portugal. Even Queen Clarice, who had unimaginable patience was starting to get annoyed with him.

"Leal Aymard Verdon, enough is enough now. Give her a fair chance and allow me to introduce her to you properly. And I don't want a word of protest, am I clear on this?" the queen stated firmly, staring her nation down.

Eventually, the other reluctantly gave in and Mia was brought in.

"You wanted to see me grandma?" Mia asked as she entered.

"Yes I did. There's someone very important that I'd like to introduce you too." the older woman replied, guiding her granddaughter further into the room where Leal was seated, his legs and arms crossed and glaring out the window bitterly.

It was obvious that the princess was confused so the queen just continued.

"Leal, this is my granddaughter, Amelia Mignonette Thermopolis Renaldi. And Mia, this is Leal Aymard Verdon, the Monarchy of Genovia."

Genovia looked up at the princess and was inwardly relishing the look of confusion on her face. He loved this part of his job so much, the looks he received upon first introductions were always priceless. Mia looked back at her Grandma and found her voice again.

"You mean he's a government representative of Genovia." She tried to clarify only making the brunette snicker.

"No. I mean he is the Monarchy of Genovia. Our country." Clarice corrected, her voice as serious as ever.

Now her face was one of complete shock and disbelief and that only made Leal laugh harder.

"You should see your face right now! It's almost the same as that picture of you in the newspaper where you're in nothing but a towel!" He shot coldly, making Mia look at him incredulously and earning a glare from Clarice that instantly silenced him.

"At any rate, you two will be working very closely with one another from now on so I expect both of you to be civil towards one another, and that's goes double for you Genovia." She warned the nation on the couch.

Genovia scowled, then nodded making his short curls bounce slightly at the action. Mia also voiced her understanding and the queen left satisfied, saying that they should spend some time getting acquainted before she left. There was a tense silence in the room for a while before Mia decided to break it.

"So…. you're Genovia, huh?" She said, instantly regretting asking it since it was rather redundant.

"What, are you clumsy and stupid? Yes, I'm Genovia. It's not a hard name to remember, and you are Amelia. The one who embarrassed me so badly at the State dinner I couldn't even show my face at my birthday." the other snapped, his violet eyed locked on her punitively.

Needless to say, Mia was shocked at the outburst, but she recovered quickly and once again found her voice.

"Oh, that Independence day ball was your birthday? I'm sorry, is there a way I could make it up to you somehow?"

He blinked twice then tried to think of a retort. He wasn't expecting that, but that didn't mean he was going to accept her as his queen. Eventually he found something to say.

"I'll let you think about that one yourself. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to see about spending my summers in Paris, Madrid, or Lisbon!" Genovia snarled before leaving to his room in a huff.

Mia stayed where she was, running a hand through her hair and plopping down on the nearest chair.

"This isn't going to go well." She muttered, internally trying to reassure herself that things would get better with time.

***Hetalia***

A.Q.: Hey guys. I hope you like this cross over. It's the first one I've posted so…. yeah. I'll try to get the next chapter up for you guys zoo, until then send me thoughts and ideas for future chapters are welcome. :


	2. Unease

Title: Mia, please meet Genovia

Rating: T

Summary: Mia Thermopolis was in for a lot upon arriving in Genovia, but she certainly wasn't expecting a country personification that was less than thrilled to have her as the new queen and would do anything to make her leave. Is Mia in over her head?

Pairings: None. Minor one-sided Genovia x France in later chapters.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Princess Diaries or APH.

Note: **IMPORTANT: Due to the fact that he looks too much like Spain I'm making Genovia blonde from here on out! It is ****NOT**** a typo if I refer to him as blonde, it is change I made!**

Special thanks too: _Lisa-chan17-_ First review! I'm glad you thought it was funny and thank you for keeping my butt in gear to update. If you didn't I probably wouldn't have updated for a lot longer.

_Otakuover9000-_ There is a next chapter and here it is! I'm so glad you love it so much. For a while I was worried nobody liked it.

_DaughterofDemeter123-_ Thanks for pointing out the grammatical error in the first chapter. I didn't notice it myself until after it was posted. I'll probably fix it later depending on how lazy I am. Thank you for supporting me and finally getting my butt in gear to post it. Our Genovia OC's might just conquer the world one day. XD

***Hetalia***

After successfully avoiding the princess for quite a few summers, Genovia's luck ended when she returned after graduation to begin her training to become queen and Clarice made him stay. So sadly, he was now in his room, talking on the phone with Spain, not-so-happily waiting for his princess to get there from the airport.

"Honestly Spain, she's a nightmare. An absolute nightmare. She can't even take care of herself and because of her antics I've become a laughing stock so many times! It's humiliating!" The blonde despaired, his thick curls bouncing as he paced.

"You're overreacting, things have been pretty quiet since the Independence day ball when she accepted her title. Maybe she won't be that bad. Give her a chance, she might surprise you." Spain replied, his voice as chipper as ever.

The blonde took a deep breath and looked out the window as he saw Fat Louie scamper out of the car that just pulled in.

"I'll try to be civil, but only for sake of you and Clarice." he conceded, taking a piece of pear flavored popcorn from the bowl on the table he prepared earlier and eating it.

"Gracias…. Are you eating that pear flavored popcorn again?" The Spaniard asked at the sound of the other's crunching.

Leal swallowed what was in his mouth before giving his reply.

"Yes, would you like me to send you some? It's really good." the blonde offered, very pleased at the change of topic.

"Si, very much so. I missed my chance to try some last time I had visited and I heard it was muy bueno from Portugal. Actually, I'll be over soon anyway so I can try some while I'm there." Antonio replied cheerily.

Genovia's mood perked up at that. He loved it when his 'family' visited and even more so, he was also quite humbled by the praise. Most other countries didn't like his pear flavored snacks, so it was nice to hear that Portugal liked it and Spain was willing to try it.

"Oui, yes of course! I'll make sure everything is ready for you upon your arrival!" he declared, slipping into his native French for a moment at the beginning.

"Gracious! Whoops, I have to go now. Lovi's getting mad that I've been on the phone so long. I'll see you at Mia's birthday ball."

"Well, at least now I won't completely loathe the night." Leal replied before bidding him well and hanging up just in time before Clarice came into the room.

"Leal I'm sure you're aware that Mia is here, am I right?" Clarice asked, watching him sternly.

"I'm aware. I hope you know I'm not going tonight for her sake though. I'm going to catch up with the other nations who came with their bosses." Leal replied stubbornly.

"Very well, that's fine for now but I do expect you to behave, do you understand?" The queen asked firmly.

"Yes, your highness. I will behave myself." Leal replied, keeping his eyes to the ground as a show of respect.

"Good, now then please get ready and help set up, please. We need all the help we can get." the other replied before leaving elegantly.

Leal kept his eyes on the ground as the start of a headache crept into the back of his mind. He knew for a nation, that could mean many things from a large scale massacre, war, famine, plague, or as little as a inside problem with the country. This time, he was sure it was a warning.

"If Amelia is how I think she is, and if who I think is coming tries anything, we'll need nothing short than a miracle." He stated quietly before changing into a more appropriate outfit for the ball, and quietly joining in setting up.

***The Princess Diaries***

A.Q.: Short chapter is short! I'm sorry! But cliffhanger now! Haha! Who is making Genovia uneasy? You're all gonna have to way and see. Please review if you like it, and please help me if you can. I need some ideas to help get this moving along. Thanks


	3. Viscount Mabrey and Leal

Title: Mia, please meet Genovia

Rating: T

Summary: Mia Thermopolis was in for a lot upon arriving in Genovia, but she certainly wasn't expecting a country personification that was less than thrilled to have her as the new queen and would do anything to make her leave. Is Mia in over her head?

Pairings: None. Minor one-sided Genovia x France in later chapters.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Princess Diaries or APH.

_**IMPORTANT: **_I'm sorry this chapter took so long! My laptop broke and I needed to get it fixed so couldn't work on this until I got it back! Then school started and I was all GRRR! Again I'm so sorry for the wait and I hope this chapter was worth it!

***Princess Diaries***

"Bonjour, Leal! Oh vous regarde, vous avez grandi depuis la dernière fois que je vous vois!" a jovial voice chirped not to far away from where Leal was standing.

Leal turned around and was delighted to see it was none other than one of his former guardians France coming over to greet him. The ball had already begun and it wouldn't be long before the Queen herself made her appearance so he had some time to mingle.

"Papa, c'est vraiment très agréable de vous voir à nouveau! Comment avez-vous été depuis que je vous ai vu la dernière fois?" thé younger blonde replied, happily changing over to his native French.

"I've been well, merci. Well, you certainly know how to throw a party. Impressive as usual, non?" France praised, his expression clearly showing his delight.

"Ah, this is nothing compared to what you could do. If I may be so bold though, I do wish she were your princess rather than my own." the younger lamented, rolling his eyes at just the thought of his soon-to-be queen.

"Oh come now, I'm sure she is very charming." the older nation responded as they made their way through the crowd to meet with Leal's parliament.

"With all due respect, you think anyone beautiful that will stay still long enough to let you have your way with them is charming." Genovia replied cheekily.

For as long as he could remember, he had never been afraid of pushing his caregiver's buttons. (A fact which drove England nearly insane when he had briefly occupied his land after the first world war.) Now was no exception, except that, unlike England, France and Spain were much more lenient with him, simply laughing it off as part of his charm.

"That is not true. I would be wanting them to hold still long enough for me to get them to my bed." The Frenchman joked, making the Genovian next to him laugh softly.

"Some things never change I see, and I'm relieved that that has applied to your sense of humor." Genovia replied, smiling genuinely for the first time that day.

"I'm glad you think so. At any rate, your parliament is expecting you so far be it for me to hold you up. Bon soir."

"Bon soir, papa. Oh, and if you see him before I do tonight can you please give my regards to papito?" Genovia replied over his shoulder.

"Of course, cher." The older man replied before disappearing into the crowd.

Genovia smiled and made his way over to his Prime minister, dipping his head slightly as a show of respect before the crowd was called to attention and the queen made her entrance. The crowd bowed and Leal couldn't help but to smile wider. He loved his queen very much and didn't want her to step down. Granted he had seen many great rulers, but Clarice had always been a favorite to him.

The crowd straightened and Clarice began her speech, welcoming everyone there and after some brief mingling, praised her Granddaughter before the young woman in question made her entrance. The crowd raised their glasses in a toast to the princess, Leal raising his own half-heartedly as her ring flew off as she waved to the crowd, nearly hitting one of the doormen in the face.

Leal, lowered his head embarrassed as he heard Austria mutter something to Hungary and Portugal snicker with Spain. France just shook his head as England rolled his eyes and Romania tried to subdue his laughter by asking Norway to distract him (by which he immediately stepped on the other blonde's foot to make him shut up, much to the Romanian's chagrin.) Sweden silenced Denmark's snicker with a cold glare as Finland and Iceland exchanged a look of concern and pity. Other European countries proceeded to give concerned looks to their bosses as a few Asian countries simply looked down, one occasionally muttering something along the lines of 'Regrettable' or 'Poor Genovia'.

Mia was just as caught off guard as her guests and immediately turned around to control any possible damage.

"I am so sorry!" the princess stated, sincerity and slight worry in her tone.

"It happens all the time, and happy birthday." The doorman replied, returning the ring to the queen-to-be smiling.

She smiled politely then looked out at Leal and saw the look on his face. He was clearly embarrassed by that. Not a good start to the evening.

***Hetalia***

The evening continued smoothly enough, Mia danced with all the foreign princes, but did find one man rather interesting, and oddly enough their first meeting started off with a bout of clumsiness as she stepped on the young man's foot. Nicholas he had called himself. After the dancing, she went to meet all the members of parliament with Leal and Prime minister Motaz. She was definitely not enjoying the task, but she did appreciate the opportunity as she really felt she needed to talk to Genovia.

"Genovia, are you still upset about earlier tonight?" Mia asked between greetings.

"What was your first clue?" Genovia sneered, keeping a smile on his face as he shook another member of parliament's hand and giving a brief hello.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to embarrass you." Mia replied, smiling at another member of parliament and greeting him politely.

"Well you did, and sorry doesn't change that fact _princess."_ Leal retorted, adding heavy sarcasm when he said her title.

Mia was disappointed, but dropped the issue. Clearly this wasn't going anywhere and she needed to focus on what she was doing anyway. She'd find a way to get Genovia to tolerate her later.

"Charlotte, how many members of parliament are there?" Mia asked wearily.

"Only two more your highness." the blonde replied, and Mia and Leal stepped forward to follow.

Leal moved first, evading the bustling servants and guests with ease. Mia was not so lucky as a passing servant knocked the tiara off her head and into the hands of the man that was moving forward to greet the princess. A man that made the blonde nation's blood boil. Viscount Mabrey.

'Well look who decided to show up.' Leal thought bitterly, keeping a polite distance but listening intently to every word of their conversation. The servant was apologizing to the princess but she was very polite and had a good sense of humor about the subject.

"Oh no, it's fine. No harm, no foul, no bruise." she replied before turning to the man who had caught her tiara, "Thank you so much."

The man in question simply put the tiara back on her head and replied with, "You should be careful your royal highness, somebody might try to take that away from you."

Mia straightened out the fallen headdress and replied with, "Well, I hope not. Thank you so much for all your help." and continued on to find the Prime Minister.

Leal remained, keeping himself within earshot as he noticed that the other hadn't left and was staring his princess down.

"Someone like me." He said, once the princess was out of earshot.

Leal's head ripped with fresh pain and he now understood, taking a few steps forward and making his presence known.

"You should be more careful about what you say Viscount Mabrey, you never know who might hear you." the blonde stated, a cold edge in his tone.

The Viscount turned around and remained silent a moment or two before giving a reply.

"Indeed, although I have to ask, Leal Aymard Verdon, what you think you can do about a little talk."

Now it was Leal's turn to be silent as he knew he was caught at an impasse now. It was nothing but talk now, so they both knew he was powerless to do more than just warn him to watch his mouth. Not in the mood to deal with the Viscount further, he dismissed himself, giving one final warning before he left to keep a civil tongue in his mouth.

He walked with a purpose, soon coming back up to the princess' side. He kept a smile on his face and greeted the remaining two parliament members before leaning a bit closer to Mia and speaking in hushed tones.

"Keep your eye on Viscount Mabrey. I don't trust his intentions and a nation's intuition is very rarely ever wrong."

Mia nodded then Leal spoke again.

"Oh, and by the way, I'll be sure to give you hell later for stepping on that young man's foot and so clumsily walking into that servant's tray. You're more embarrassing than anything else I could possibly think of in my wildest imagination."

Mia closed her eyes, and groaned quietly in exasperation. So close.

***The Princess Diaries***

AQ: Ugh, this chapter took so long, but it's finally done. I hope people aren't too mad at me for glossing over the movies details too much, but this story really is more about how Mia and Genovia are getting along so I figured you've all seen the movie and you know how it goes. Why get too much into detail about what everyone already knows, right? Well I hope to hear what you think, please review


	4. Marriage laws and two evils

Title: Mia, please meet Genovia

Rating: T

Summary: Mia Thermopolis was in for a lot upon arriving in Genovia, but she certainly wasn't expecting a country personification that was less than thrilled to have her as the new queen and would do anything to make her leave. Is Mia in over her head?

Pairings: None. Minor one-sided Genovia x France in later chapters.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Princess Diaries or APH.

***Hetalia***

Leal walked slowly down the castle halls, really in no hurry to get to the meeting. Meetings with parliament were always boring, and it's not like they've ever really done anything that he hadn't already anticipated anyway, so he was always reluctant when he had to go to them. However, Queen Clarice had always insisted on his attendance, so he went along to avoid displeasing her.

He looked up from the ground and saw princess Mia wandering around the halls with a coffee mug in her hands. She was probably exploring but at the moment he didn't care. He was just happy now to have an excuse not to talk to her. But it seemed luck was not in his favor as she looked over just in time to see him and immediately made her way over to him.

"There you are, I was hoping I'd find you." she said, never really one for beating around the bush.

Leal rolled his eyes and crossed his arms bitterly.

"Of course you were, because I can't go one full day without running into you. What are you looking for me for this time _your highness._" the blonde sneered, again using heavy sarcasm on her title.

Granted this was a bit irritating to Mia, but she let it slide. He was just being his usual bitter self, but she was confidant that would change soon.

"I was actually looking for you because I figured since you were here longer than anyone, you'd know the most about the palace-" She was cut off there by Genovia snickering at her.

"And you were hoping I'd show you around and explore with you, am I right?" He again sneered.

Mia confirmed that he was right, and Genovia stifled a smirk as he prepared to pop her happy little hopeful bubble.

"Terribly sorry Amelia, but I'm late for a meeting with parliament. I simply don't have time for you." He replied, trying to keep stone faced as he said that, but failing as the hint of a smirk tugged at the corners of his lips.

Mia's face fell and she was silent for a very brief moment before finding her voice once again.

"Oh, well, have fun with your meeting then." she stated rather flatly.

Leal rolled his eyes again before giving his reply.

"I'll be loathing every moment of it."

With that he continued on and slipped into the meeting room just in time to hear the meeting get called to order and announce Prime minister Motaz was residing. ('shocker' Leal thought sarcastically as he slouched in his chair.) The Prime Minister looked out from over the podium and spoke.

"Viscount Mabrey, you have the floor." he said curtly.

Leal immediately sat up straight at that. What the hell was he planning? After what he had overheard at the ball, he didn't trust him as far as he could throw him. The viscount rose from his seat and took the floor.

"As we all know, the 21st birthday to an heir to the Genovian bloodline is indeed a matter of great public significance. It signifies that this young person is eligible to assume the crown."

Now it was Sebastian's turn to speak as he was getting just as annoyed of the reiterating of the law as everyone else.

"Indeed, we are all aware Viscount." The room broke into murmurs or agreement as he continued, "The queen has already indicated that princess Mia intends to learn more at her side before assuming the throne."

Leal rolled his eyes for the third time that day before speaking up himself.

"If all you are going to do is reiterate all that we already know, I'm going to have to ask you to sit back down, Viscount."

Mabrey, however, was undeterred and just kept going.

"It was not Princess Mia to whom I was referring."

Leal was silenced immediately, and the queen's expression immediately turned to one of grave surprise. It was safe to say, no one had seen that coming, and the Viscount was certain he had everyone's attention as he continued.

"King Shivaliegh, was the great great great grandfather of-" he was cut off by one of the older council members mistaking his pounding on the table for the phone and answering the inactive device after just waking up from his slumber.

Leal had to cover his mouth at that, trying his very hardest not to laugh as the Viscount continued, missing a lot of what he was saying in his attempt to be polite and courteous. Once he had calmed himself enough to listen again he wasn't sure what he was getting at.

"So as of the 20th of October last year, on the occasion of his 21st birthday, another Genovian of the royal bloodline became eligible to assume the throne…. my nephew, Lord Devereaux."

Leal was about to say something, but queen Clarice ascending from her chair silenced him as she stared down the viscount.

"I beg your pardon." She said firmly, almost as though daring the Viscount to continue.

A dare, he took without hesitation.

"My nephew's mother, was my wife's sister, therefore your majesty, I am pleased to say that my nephew is ready to take his rightful place, as Genovia's rightful king."

Blood boiling and everyone else in the room in shock, Leal immediately rose from his seat and said the first thing on his mind.

"You _sir,_ have no right to say what is rightful to me and what isn't! The Rinaldi's have always been my royal family, no Devereaux is going to change that!"

Knowing he had spoken out of turn, the parliament member next to him simply pulled him gently back into his seat, reminding him that he couldn't interfere on decisions of parliament and the royal family. Needless to say he was annoyed, but there wasn't anything he could do about it anyway. He knew it was true, and he loathed the fact with all his being. But his cold mood didn't last long as the queen was next to react.

Her face was frozen in an expression of shock and after a momentary silence, she only managed two words.

"Shut up."

The entire room once again began buzzing with shock, and Leal once again began laughing, this time not bothering to hide it. He knew no one would hear him anyway, and he only laughed harder when the Viscount replied with a simple, "I beg your pardon."

He was starting to like these meetings a little more now that things were finally entertaining, but it didn't last long as the Prime Minister explained that she wasn't telling him to shut up, that it was simply a phrase similar to 'Oh my goodness' and the like. However things got right back to business as quickly as they fell to disarray as another member of Parliament spoke up.

"But isn't Princess Mia first in line to ascend the throne?"

Sebastian looked at the one who spoke and answered his question.

"Not yet. Genovian law states that a princess must marry before she can…. take the throne."

Leal remained silent, but Clarice reacted immediately.

"We have never enforced that law! A man doesn't have to marry to be king, I meant this is the 21st century for heaven's sake. My granddaughter should be given the same rights as any man." she stated firmly.

Immediately afterwards a resounding 'yeah!' echoed throughout the room from seemingly no where. Everyone looked around to try to find the source, but Genovia just smirked.

'looks like the princess found the secret passageway.' he thought, chuckling softly to himself.

The lightheartedness of the situation didn't last though as another man spoke.

"Genovia shall have no queen, lest she be bound in matrimony."

Leal felt faint so held his tongue. Clarice, in a similar state of disbelief only managed the gentleman's name.

"Lord Palamore."

The man in question stood and continued.

"That is the law of Genovia for the last 300 years. Princess Mia is not qualified to rule because she's unmarried. Forgive me your majesty, not all of are sure the princess is the most suitable choice to govern our great nation."

The room all Ooooh-ed in unison, and Genovia felt sick. Granted he care much for his princess either, but that didn't mean he wanted Lord Devereaux to become his king. Of the two choices, he was almost certain that Amelia would be the less of the two evils. He didn't want to have a king that wasn't a Rinaldi, but his word didn't mean a thing here. He was just a bystander in all of this as others around him determined his future.

Head spinning and stomach churning, the blonde sunk into his chair as he tried to get a handle on all that was going on. However, Prime minister Motaz speaking up pulled the blonde from his thoughts.

"Now gentlemen, gentlemen, please! I suggest that this honored body allow Princess Mia… one year, during which time she must marry, or she forfeits the throne of Genovia to young Lord Devereaux."

The Viscount wasn't having any of that though, and spoke up immediately.

"I object! I object most strongly!"

With that the whole room went into chaos with various shouts and suggestions.

"Sixty days!"

"Two months!"

Finally, Lord Palamore spoke above them all with a resounding and resolute, "Thirty days."

With the thirty day deadline decided on, the meeting was adjourned, and Leal followed silently behind Queen Clarice as she made her way to the throne room to meet with Mia.

It wasn't long before she showed up and after a brief explanation about how she had already heard everything from the passageway, the young woman was in a panic.

"How could parliament expect me to fall in love in thirty days. It's like, it's like it's a big trick to get me to have an arranged marriage or-" she cut herself off there and paused as a look, that Genovia couldn't read crossed her face before she continued.

"No… no there's no or, that's it, an arranged marriage is my only choice."

Leal could have made a snide remark, but his head was still spinning from the meeting so he just remained silent and let her continue, remaining in his place by the throne with Maurice by his side, a polite distance away from the two women.

"What kind of person agrees to an arranged marriage?" she blurted out, and Queen Clarice looked over at a portrait on the wall before looking back at Mia and smiling.

Immediately, the brunette understood and continued hesitantly.

"Uh… you agreed to an arranged marriage. Hehe…. right?"

"Yes I did." the queen replied levelly, looking back at the portrait with a smile before continuing, "And it turned out quite splendidly. He was my best friend, we grew very fond of each other."

Genovia's heart sank as he started petting Maurice. He remembered those years well, and he could feel that his queen still missed him dearly. Still, human lives were much shorter than his own, so he was quite accustomed to this by now. Still he remained silent, and Mia spoke up.

"And I'm sure, grandma, but I dream of love, not fondness."

"But you don't have to do this Mia. You don't have to become queen." Clarice offered.

Mia leaned against a pillar and her voice broke with a few surpressed sobs.

"This is so unfair."

That was when her gaze also wandered to the portraits and, after following her eyes with his own, Leal noticed she was gazing at the one of her father, the late King Rupert. He watched her now as a change came over her face and she began speaking, softly at first, but as she continued with more certainty and commitment.

"Courage is not the absence of fear, rather the judgement that something else is more important…. than fear." she stood up straight and looked around the room at all the portraits before she continued, "There are 550 years of Rinaldi's on these walls, and I will be up there next to my father. I'm sure I want my chance to make a difference as a ruler."

Clarice smiled proudly before giving her reply.

"Spoken like a true queen."

Mia let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding and Genovia finally decided to speak.

"But arrived at like a true airhead."

Clarice gave him a warning look and Mia sighed again. Gaining over the nation himself was still going to be a different matter all together that much was certain.

***The Princess Diaries***

A.Q.: OMG could this be another finished chapter? It is! I'm so sorry it's so late. I fail at updating. I'm not even going to try to promise the next one will be up sooner, I know it's not going to happen. But hopefully this chapter being a little longer will make up for it. Please review and let me know what you think


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